Yesterday I went to the local KTM mania 2011 event, that was held at a sports camp site near where I live. I think it might be the first year for this event over here, but I'm not sure.
The event started on Friday evening, and finished Sunday night, with a bazaar room that had all the model range on display, stock bikes from previous years at very low prices, KTM clothing and accesories etc. The also had parties late at night with live bands playing, a fashion show etc.
Outside they had a mud track for testing the off-road bikes and for mx "races" with profesional riders, and at the court they held the stunt & drift show, the had their x-bow car (10 winners went around the track in it as co-pilots), and, the most important, the test ride bikes.
All you had to do is go there, let them know your name and show them your driving licence, and choose up to 3 bikes to test. First I did a test ride on their new small bike, the Duke 125. (They had plenty of those and were available without a long wait).
It was fun for what it is, and I guess it's superb for youngsters (they can only ride up to 125cc over here), but I wouldn't spend that kind of money on such a small bike. The riding position was quite forward, close to the front wheel, which made me feel akward, but it as extremely light and easy to ride, it literally ode it self, I didn't even have to thing my lines around corners haha. After riding the Buell it felt so underpowered, and I was quite amazed on how the stunt guys could perform stunts and burnouts on this one. But it surely is one of the most powerful 4-stroke 125cc bikes around.
After waiting around for a bit, the time I was expecting arrived, and I found myself onboard the RC8 superbike.
They had two of those, the simple RC8 model, not the R, so probably from 2010 or 2009, as the crisis have hit hard on moto sales over here. One had an aftermarket exhaust and other parts, the one I was on was stock. We followed the KTM guy around for 15-20 minutes (around 10 bikes), but I managed to stay a bit behind a couple of times, so that I can experience a bit of the bikes potencial firsthand.
The bike was really easy to ride, the riding position matched by body style perfectly, it felt really light and easily maneuverable at low speeds. What I liked is that it had all the V-twin grunt and excitement, but was easy to live with, but not in an boring way (as on friends Japanese bikes that I've riden). The power was abundant, even from really low RPM, and it wouldn't shake itself to bits if you were a gear up. I achieved warp speed in nanoseconds haha. On the road we were on though I couldn't go 100%, so it didn't feel much faster than my XB12R, I'm sure it is though. I won't be selling my Buell for one of these for various reasons, but if someone is on the market for a superbike, I strongly suggest you try one of these, it is a VERY nice bike. I didn't like KTMs, but after this ride I strongly suggest an RC8 if you can afford one that is.
It was getting late, one of my friends couldn't wait, and we were all getting hungry, so we skipped the chance to try another bike and went to a tavern. Maybe next year, if they do it again aroound here. Nice experience overal.
The event started on Friday evening, and finished Sunday night, with a bazaar room that had all the model range on display, stock bikes from previous years at very low prices, KTM clothing and accesories etc. The also had parties late at night with live bands playing, a fashion show etc.
Outside they had a mud track for testing the off-road bikes and for mx "races" with profesional riders, and at the court they held the stunt & drift show, the had their x-bow car (10 winners went around the track in it as co-pilots), and, the most important, the test ride bikes.
All you had to do is go there, let them know your name and show them your driving licence, and choose up to 3 bikes to test. First I did a test ride on their new small bike, the Duke 125. (They had plenty of those and were available without a long wait).
It was fun for what it is, and I guess it's superb for youngsters (they can only ride up to 125cc over here), but I wouldn't spend that kind of money on such a small bike. The riding position was quite forward, close to the front wheel, which made me feel akward, but it as extremely light and easy to ride, it literally ode it self, I didn't even have to thing my lines around corners haha. After riding the Buell it felt so underpowered, and I was quite amazed on how the stunt guys could perform stunts and burnouts on this one. But it surely is one of the most powerful 4-stroke 125cc bikes around.
After waiting around for a bit, the time I was expecting arrived, and I found myself onboard the RC8 superbike.
They had two of those, the simple RC8 model, not the R, so probably from 2010 or 2009, as the crisis have hit hard on moto sales over here. One had an aftermarket exhaust and other parts, the one I was on was stock. We followed the KTM guy around for 15-20 minutes (around 10 bikes), but I managed to stay a bit behind a couple of times, so that I can experience a bit of the bikes potencial firsthand.
The bike was really easy to ride, the riding position matched by body style perfectly, it felt really light and easily maneuverable at low speeds. What I liked is that it had all the V-twin grunt and excitement, but was easy to live with, but not in an boring way (as on friends Japanese bikes that I've riden). The power was abundant, even from really low RPM, and it wouldn't shake itself to bits if you were a gear up. I achieved warp speed in nanoseconds haha. On the road we were on though I couldn't go 100%, so it didn't feel much faster than my XB12R, I'm sure it is though. I won't be selling my Buell for one of these for various reasons, but if someone is on the market for a superbike, I strongly suggest you try one of these, it is a VERY nice bike. I didn't like KTMs, but after this ride I strongly suggest an RC8 if you can afford one that is.
It was getting late, one of my friends couldn't wait, and we were all getting hungry, so we skipped the chance to try another bike and went to a tavern. Maybe next year, if they do it again aroound here. Nice experience overal.
